Funding to Support Victims and Survivors of Hate Crimes
Victims Fund

Call for Proposals

Application Period: July 27, 2026 – September 10, 2026
Funding Application Deadline: Noon (12:00 p.m.) Pacific Time (PT), September 10, 2026

Overview

The Federal Victims Strategy (FVS) is led by the Department of Justice Canada that seeks to improve access to justice for victims and survivors of crime and give them a more effective voice in the criminal justice system.

The Victims Fund, a component of the FVS, provides grants and contributions to support projects and activities that encourage the development of new approaches, promote access to justice, improve the capacity of service providers, foster the establishment of referral networks, and/or increase awareness of services available to victims and survivors of crime and their families.

In light of the increase of hate-motivated crimes^{Footnote 1} and their impacts on communities, the Government launched Canada’s Action Plan on Combatting Hate in 2024. Through the Action Plan, the Government of Canada has committed to supporting community outreach and law enforcement reform, tackling the rise in hate crimes, enhancing community security, countering radicalization, and increasing support for victims.

This Call for Proposals seeks to strengthen community resilience, enhance public safety, and improve support systems for victim and survivors of hate crimes by addressing their ongoing and emerging needs.

For the purpose of this initiative, the focus is on projects that support victims and survivors of hate crimes, whether these crimes are reported or not to the police. Hate-motivated incidents, which are non-criminal in nature, do not fall within the scope of this initiative.

Funding Opportunity Objectives

This Call for Proposals invites interested applicants to submit project proposals that contribute to one or more of the following objectives:

• Develop or enhance support or assistance services for victims and survivors of hate crimes;
• Contribute to increased knowledge and awareness of the impact of victimization, the needs of victims and survivors of hate crimes, and the available services, assistance, programs and legislation;
• Promote, encourage and/or enhance community and stakeholder involvement in the identification of, reporting of, and response to the needs of victims and survivors of hate crimes and gaps in available services.

Eligible Project Activities

Applications may include, but are not limited to, the following types of activities:

• Training programs for law enforcement and service providers to strengthen responses to hate crimes and further improve cultural competency.
• Development of tools, resources, or protocols to enhance the identification, reporting of, and response to hate crimes.
• Community education and awareness initiatives to increase understanding of hate crimes and available supports for victims and survivors. 
• Direct support services for victims and survivors to increase access to justice for victims, including the provision of information, referrals and navigation of the criminal justice system.
• Capacity-building activities, such as needs assessments, pilot projects, research and service development for new and innovative approaches to supporting victims and survivors of hate crimes (e.g., restorative justice approaches).
• Initiatives to improve reporting of hate crimes, including mechanisms that enhance access and trust in reporting processes (e.g., third party reporting models).
• Development and implementation of policies and procedures within organizations or across sectors to strengthen responses to victims and survivors of hate crimes.
• Partnership-building and collaboration initiatives to strengthen relationships among community organizations, service providers, and other stakeholders to facilitate access to justice and tailored support for victims and survivors of hate crimes.

Planned Results

All applications must demonstrate how they will contribute to the planned results for the initiative:

• Increased capacity to support victims and survivors of hate-related crimes.
• Increased awareness about the unique needs of victims and survivors of hate-related crimes.
• Increased access to services for victims and survivors of hate-related crimes.

Who can apply for this funding?

• Not-for-profit non-governmental organizations
• Inuit, Métis, First Nations governments, bands, Tribal Councils, local, regional and national Indigenous organizations
• Professional organizations
• Canadian educational institutions
• Provincial, territorial, municipal and regional governments and agencies, including law enforcement agencies

Key Considerations

The following key considerations should be clearly addressed in every application. These considerations will be part of the assessment criteria for all applications received.

Gender-Based Analysis Plus (GBA Plus)

GBA Plus is an analytical tool used to support the development of responsive and inclusive initiatives, including legislation, policies, programs and services. GBA Plus is a process for understanding who is impacted by the issue being addressed and how; identifying how the initiative could be tailored to meet diverse needs of the people directly impacted; and discovering, anticipating and mitigating any barriers to accessing or benefitting from the initiative.

GBA Plus is an intersectional analysis that goes beyond biological (sex) and socio-cultural (gender) differences to consider other factors, such as age, disability, education, ethnicity, economic status, geography, language, race, religion, and sexual orientation. When preparing your application, explain which groups your project will serve and how your activities will affect them, especially groups that face higher risks or barriers.

To learn more about GBA Plus and to assist with developing your application, you are encouraged to take the free online course: Introduction to Gender-Based Analysis Plus and consult Justice Canada’s GBA Plus Tool for applicants and recipients of federal funding.

Trauma-Informed Practice

Trauma-informed practice is a client-centred model that is built on knowledge about the impact of violence and trauma on people’s lives and mental and physical health. It requires programs to integrate this knowledge into all aspects of practice and programming in ways that foster their clients’ safety, respect and empowerment. Trauma-informed practice is an emerging and innovative approach that can help build resilience and reduce the negative impacts for victims and survivors of trauma. Applications should demonstrate an understanding of trauma-informed practice as it relates to victims and survivors of hate crimes and describe how this practice will be built into project activities.

Official Languages

In support of Section 41 of the Official Languages Act, Justice Canada is committed to facilitating the participation of official language minority communities and their organizations in the development and assessment of Justice Canada’s policies, programs and services having significant impact on the development of the communities. Furthermore, Justice Canada is committed to taking measures to ensure that Justice's programs and services reach official language minority communities. In the context of project funding, these measures include:

• Outreach to official language minority communities to enhance their understanding of Justice Canada funding programs; and
• Encouraging contacts between organizations that are receiving financial assistance and official language minority organizations/groups to ensure that the needs of these communities are taken into consideration in relation to the proposed projects to be considered for Justice Canada funding.

Applications should describe how the proposed project will consider the needs of English and French linguistic minority communities, as applicable.

Examples of Eligible and Ineligible Expenses

The following are typically considered eligible for funding (this is not an exhaustive list of eligible expenses):

• Salaries and Benefits
• Travel (consistent with the National Joint Council Travel Directive)
• Rental or leasing of space
• Office equipment/supplies
• Consultant/Professional fees
• Evaluation
• Training
• Audit fees
• Administrative expenses (max. of 15% of total project costs)

Ineligible expenses include the following:

• Capital expenses (i.e., purchases of land, buildings, and vehicles)
• Retroactive funding
• Services or activities already funded or delivered

Length of Projects

• The length of your project will depend on the proposed objectives and activities.
• Projects are expected to start as early as Winter 2026/2027
• Projects can have a maximum duration across four fiscal years. All projects must end by March 31, 2030.

How much funding is available for each project?

The level of funding will vary from project to project based on the nature and scope of the proposed activities. Funds are limited and there is a need to ensure a diversity of projects and regional distribution of funding. Unfortunately, it may not be possible to fund all eligible projects.

Local/Regional Projects: Maximum amount of $500,000^{Footnote 2} for projects with a local reach (activities cover one community, such as a town, city or regional municipality) or regional reach (cover more than one community, city or regional municipality within a province or territory).

Provincial-Territorial and Cross-Jurisdictional Projects: Maximum amount of $800,000^{Footnote 3} for projects with provincial, territorial or cross-jurisdictional reach.

• Provincial/territorial projects: Activities cover the entire province or territory.
• Cross-jurisdictional projects: Activities cover more than two provinces or territories.

Assessment Criteria

Applications must clearly demonstrate:

• Alignment with the objectives and planned results
• Knowledge of community needs and experience supporting victims and survivors of crime
• Clear description of identified target population groups, project activities and expected impacts
• Integration of key considerations listed (GBA Plus, trauma-informed practice, official languages).
• Strength of partnerships and community engagement
• A realistic and detailed budget aligned with proposed activities and scope of project
• Organizational stability and strong support structures
• Efficient organizational financial management practices
• Strong reporting practices, including a history of submitting complete and timely reports to funders in line with funding agreement requirements

How to Apply for Funding

To apply:

• Request the application forms
  • E-mail vf-fv@justice.gc.ca
• Submit your completed application
  • By e-mail to vf-fv@justice.gc.ca
  • Deadline: September 10, 2026, at 12PM Pacific Time (PST).
• Acknowledgement of receipt
  • You will receive an e-mail confirming receipt of your application within 7 calendar days.
  • If you do not receive a confirmation, please contact the Programs Branch by phone at 613-941-4193.

Funding Decisions

Justice Canada may not be able to approve all eligible applications as funding is limited.

Funding decisions will be communicated by email to the contacts identified in the application. Funding decisions are expected in Winter 2026/2027.

If your project is approved:

• Justice Canada will contact you about next steps.
• A funding agreement must be signed and finalized before you can begin project activities.
• You will need to obtain Justice Canada’s permission before any public announcement of the funding.

Additional Information

For further information, please contact:
Victims Fund
Programs Branch
Department of Justice Canada
Phone: 613-941-4193
Email: vf-fv@justice.gc.ca